LibGuides: History Guide: Primary Sources

Guide to Primary Sources

"Students and researchers now have greater access to primary source materials for historical research than ever before. The traditional use of sources available in print and microfilm continues to be the foundation for research, but in some cases documents, letters, maps, photographs of ancient artifacts and other primary material are available online in different formats from free websites or subscription services on the internet. Users of primary sources have always needed to examine their sources critically, but now with the proliferation of electronic resources from a wide variety of web site producers, evaluation is more important than ever before. Users of web resources must now consider the authenticity of documents, what person or organization is the internet provider, and whether the electronic version serves their needs. This brief guide is designed to provide students and researchers with information to help them evaluate the internet sources and the quality of primary materials that can be found online."

General Primary Resource Databases

African American Poetry 1760-1900 (via American & English Literature) This link opens in a new window
Full text poems and prose by African-American poets.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your last name and all the numbers on the back of your ID (or your D Number, with the D.)

Subject Areas: Black Studies, English

African-American Poetry 1760-1900, a collection within American and English Literature, includes the full text of almost 3000 poems written by African-American poets in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. African-American Poetry is a resource for literary scholars and for researchers in black studies, linguistics, women's studies, black literary heritage, and comparative studies.

The poetry explores a multitude of topics, including abolition, children, civil rights, dreams, education, fugitive slave law, Indian raids, liberty, political issues, prejudice, and slavery. The variety of poem types is equally broad. The database includes allegories, broadsides, children's poems, elegiac poems, epics, hymns, odes, patriotic poems, and sonnets.

The poets are among those included in the William French et al. bibliography, Afro-American Poetry and Drama, 1760-1975. The full-text of the poems is included and is fully searchable.

Format: Full Text Books
Dates of Coverage: 1760-1900
Database Producer: BiblioLabs, provided by OhioLINK
America's Historical Imprints This link opens in a new window
Full text access to e-books, pamphlets, broadsides and ephemera.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

As the first draft of popular history, American imprints have preserved detailed perspectives of the culture, issues, and events shaping the nation for hundreds of years.

Where does the content come from?

The content in this database has been created through partnerships with the American Antiquarian Society, the Library Company of Philadelphia, and the New-York Historical Society.

What time period does it cover?

From 1535 to 1922, from the exploration of the West Indies to the codification of Jim Crow laws.

What’s in it?

America’s Historical Imprints includes over 150,000 books, pamphlets, broadsides, and other printed material illuminating centuries of American history, literature, and culture. The core of the archive is Early American Imprints, Series I and II – derived from the collections of Charles Evans and Roger Bristol and of Ralph R. Shaw and Richard H. Shoemaker. The essential complement is Afro-Americana Imprints, which includes African History and Culture, 1540-1921, Black Authors, 1556-1922, and Caribbean History and Culture, 1535-1920. Also available are American Broadsides and Ephemera, American Pamphlets Series 1, 182-1922, Civil War Broadsides and Ephemera, The American Civil War Collection, 1860-1922, and The American Slavery Collection, 1820-1922.

Format: Archival Resources
Database Producer: Readex
Collection: Part of the "Archive of Americana"
American Antiquarian Society, Historical Periodicals, Series 1-5: Portal This link opens in a new window
This portal to the American Antiquarian Society Historical Periodicals allows searching of the first five subscribed collections through one interface.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History

The American Antiquarian Society, Historical Periodicals represents two centuries of print culture, including early colonial imprints, titles published during the American Revolution, titles that cover the growth of America as a young nation, and titles published during the Civil War.

This portal allows researchers to search through the first five collections available to the Denison community through one interface.

Please note, Gale also offers access to this database (Gale access includes series 1-6).

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1691-1877
Update Schedule: Archive
Database Producer: EBSCO
American Broadsides and Ephemera, 1760-1900 This link opens in a new window
Online archive of 30,000+ searchable images of printed items that were never intended to last (broadsides and ephemera).
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subjects: History

American Broadsides and Ephemera offers fully searchable facsimile images of 30,000+ broadsides and pieces of ephemera printed between 1760 and 1900.

The remarkably diverse subjects of these broadsides range from contemporary accounts of the Civil War, unusual occurrences and natural disasters, to official government proclamations, tax bills, and town meeting reports.

Featuring many rare items, the pieces of ephemera include clipper ship sailing cards, early trade cards, bill heads, theater and music programs, stock certificates, menus and invitations documenting civic, political and private celebrations.

Format: Full Text and Images
Dates of Coverage: 1760-1900
Database Distributor: Readex
Collection: Part of "America's Historical Imprints"
American Historical Periodicals from the American Antiquarian Society This link opens in a new window
This database offers access to major and minor American historical magazines that give insights to Colonial America in the twentieth century.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Ebsco also offers access to this database
(series 1-5; series 6-7 access is not included in Ebsco).

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1681-1940
American History This link opens in a new window
Full text access to books, maps, artwork and other primary source material.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject: American History

Full text database containing books, maps, artwork and other primary source material.

This online collection is divided into two modules:
- Module I: Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859
- Module II: Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945

Format: Archival Resources
Dates of Coverage: 1493-1945
Database Distributor: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
American Pamphlets, Series I: 1820-1922 This link opens in a new window
Pamphlets reflecting American history, culture and contemporary life from 1820-1922.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: U.S. History

American Pamphlets, 1820-1922, consists of more than 25,000 rare items capturing a century of controversies.

The collection contains little-used items reflecting American history, culture and contemporary life.

Items are sourced from the collection of the New-York Historical Society, one of Americas pre-eminent cultural institutions.

Format: Full Text Pamphlets & Printed Matter, Archival Resource
Dates of Coverage: 1820-1922
Database Producer: Readex
Collection: Part of the "America's Historical Imprints"
American West This link opens in a new window
Full text primary source material describing life in the American West.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject: American History

The American West is a full text, online collection of original manuscripts, maps and ephemera.

This collection details life on the frontier, Native Americans, vigilantes, outlaws, and the growth of urban centers as well as the environmental impact of expansion.

Format: Archival Resources
Dates of Coverage: Early eighteenth century (early 1700's) to mid twentieth century (mid 1900's)
Database Distributor: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
AM Explorer This link opens in a new window
This database includes unique primary source collections in the areas of social sciences and humanities, spanning from the 15th to 21st centuries.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

To see currently available collections, click collections.

Date range: 15th to 21st centuries
Format: Archival Resources; multiple formats
Database Distributor: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
Archive of Americana This link opens in a new window
Books, pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, government documents and ephemera printed in America over three centuries.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: U.S. History

Archive of Americana contains books, pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, government documents and ephemera printed in America over three centuries.

Collections include:

- America's Historical Newspapers
- America's Historical Imprints
- American Pamphlets, Series I, 1820-1922
- American State Papers, 1789-1838
- U.S. Congressional Serial Set, 1817-1980
- House and Senate Journals, Series I, 1789-1817
- Senate Executive Journals, Series I, 1789-1980

Format: Full Text Books & Printed Matter, Archival Resource
Dates of Coverage: 1639-1980
Database Producer: Readex
Early American Imprints, Series 1: Evans, 1639-1800 This link opens in a new window
Book, pamphlet, and broadside published in North America during the 17th and 18th centuries
The diverse outlooks and attitudes of a society and culture reared under colonialism and sculpted by revolution are preserved in this collection of nearly every book, pamphlet, and broadside published in North America during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Where does the content come from?
The content in this database is based on Charles Evans’ “American Bibliography” and by Roger Bristol’s supplement, it is derived from the holdings of the American Antiquarian Society.
What time period does it cover?
From 1639 to 1800, from the establishment of the Massachusetts Bay colony to the ratification of the Treaty of Paris and beyond.
What’s in it?
This database covers many topical categories such as economics and trade, government, health, historic events, labor, law and crime, literature, military, peoples, philosophy, politics, religion, science and technology, society, manners and customs, and theology. This archive of more than 37,000 primary source documents contains varied perspectives on subjects including but not limited to:
The American Revolution
Frontier and pioneer life
Ghosts, magic, and witchcraft
The Seven Years War
The Alien and Sedition laws
Abolitionists, slaves, and slavery
Colonization
The Wyoming Massacre
The Navigation Acts
Wit and humor
Constitutional law and amendments
Political corruption, crimes, and offenses
Taverns and temperance
The fall of man and a future life
Children’s literature

And originating from printers such as:
Robert Aitken
John Dunlop
Benjamin Franklin
Isaiah Thomas

This database provides important background and context for students researching the evolution of American governance, law, literature, politics, religion, and society.

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1639-1800
Database Producer: Readex
Collection: Part of "America's Historical Imprints"
Early American Imprints, Series 2: Shaw-Shoemaker, 1801-1819 This link opens in a new window
Over 36,000 books, pamphlets, and broadsides published in the early nineteenth century (1801-1819).
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subjects: History, U.S. History

Early American Imprints, Series II chronicles the people, ideas and events behind the early political, social, cultural and geographic growth of the United States.

Researchers can study the emergence of American arts and literature, follow the progression of American economic, religious and scientific thought, track the westward expansion, and much more.

In addition to its books, pamphlets and broadsides, this comprehensive collection features many state papers and government materials, including published reports; presidential letters and messages; congressional, state and territorial resolutions.

This collection includes supplementary material from the Library Company of Philadelphia as well as the American Antiquarian Society, spanning 1801-1819.

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1801-1819
Database Producer: Readex
Collection: Part of "America's Historical Imprints"
Early Encounters in North America This link opens in a new window
Contains approximately 1400 authors and letters, diaries, and memoirs.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: U.S. History, Sociology & Anthropology

Early Encounters in North America (EENA) contains approximately 1400 authors and 100,000 pages of material. It includes letters, diaries, memoirs and accounts of early encounters.

Format: Archival Resources
Dates of Coverage: 1600-Present
Database Producer: Alexander Street Press
Empire Online This link opens in a new window
Collection of original documents ideally suited to the teaching and study of empire studies.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History

Empire Online is an educational collection of original documents, sourced from libraries and archives around the world and ideally suited to the teaching and study of empire studies. The wealth of documents spans five centuries and includes manuscripts, rare printed materials, letterbooks, periodicals, diaries, photographs and more.

Supplementing the primary sources are a wealth of secondary resources. Students and researchers will benefit from exploring the plethora of essays written by leading academics in the field, interactive maps, chronology and fascinating image gallery.

The images are from about ten different libraries and archives around the world, including a strong core of document images from the British Library, including the Oriental and India Office Collections at the British Library; the University of Birmingham Library; the Bodleian Library, Oxford; and the Public Record Office and the State Records, New South Wales, Australia.

Format: Archival Materials
Dates of Coverage: 1492-21st century
Database Distributor: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
European views of the Americas, 1493-1750 This link opens in a new window
More than 32,000 entries to printed records about the Americas written in Europe before 1750.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History

European views of the Americas, 1493-1750 is a valuable index for libraries, scholars and individuals interested in European works that relate to the Americas. The database contains more than 32,000 entries and is a comprehensive guide to printed records about the Americas written in Europe before 1750. It covers the history of European exploration as well as portrayals of native American peoples. A wide range of subject areas are covered; from natural disasters to disease outbreaks and slavery. The original bibliography was co-developed by John Alden and Dennis Landis, Curator of European Books at The John Carter Brown Library.
Database Producer: EBSCO Publishing.
Food and Drink in History This link opens in a new window
Includes printed and manuscript cookbooks, advertising ephemera, government reports, films, and illustrated content of food and drink.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subjects: Food History

This resource aims to represent a range of key food and drink history stories from the evolution of food within everyday life to haute cuisine, charting key issues around agriculture and food production, and looking into advertising histories of key food and drink brands. The materials in this collection illustrate the deep links between food and identity, politics, power, gender, race, and socio-economic status.

Format: Full Text, audio, videos
Dates of Coverage:
Database Distributor: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
Gilded Age This link opens in a new window
Online archive covering America in the late nineteenth century, including race and ethnicity, immigration, labor, women's rights, American Indians, political corruption, and monetary policy.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: U.S. History

The Gilded Age brings together primary documents and scholarly commentary into a searchable collection and online archive. These primary source materials are frequently rare and hard-to-find, and include songs, letters, photographs, cartoons, government documents, and ephemera.

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1865 to 1902
Database Producer: Alexander Street Press
Global Commodities: Trade, Exploration & Cultural Exchange, ca. 1515-2012 This link opens in a new window
Contains material associated with the economic, social and political history of commodities.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History, economics

Global commodities contains material associated with the economic, social and political history of commodities. The resource provides access to a wide range of rare printed and manuscript sources, visual material, ephemera and objects associated with the history of 15 commodities: chocolate, coffee, cotton, fur, oil, opium, porcelain, silver and gold, spices, sugar, tea, timber, tobacco, wheat, wine and spirits. The material also covers other commodities including beef, cheese, coal, corn, fish, fruits, machinery, rice, silk and wool.

The commodities included in this resource have been transported, exchanged and consumed around the world for hundreds of years, helping transform societies, global trading operations, habits of consumption and social practices.

Format: Archival Materials
Dates of Coverage: 1500-present
Database Producer: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
History Vault (Proquest) This link opens in a new window
Contains archival materials in many areas including African-American studies, womens studies, history, political science, and more.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History, Political Science, Women's Studies, Black Studies

ProQuest History Vault is an archival resource in progress. When complete, this database will contain 25+ modules of archival content covering many areas, including African-American studies, womens studies, history, political science, and more. This resource includes letters, papers, photographs, scrapbooks, financial records, diaries, and much more.

Denison currently has access to the following modules:
- Black Freedom Struggle in the 20th Century: Federal Government Records, Organizational Records, & Personal Papers
- NAACP: Major Campaigns, Board of Directors, Annual Conferences, Major Speeches, & National Staff Files
- Slavery and the Law (1775-1867)
- Vietnam War and American Foreign Policy (1960-1975)
- World War II: U.S. Documents on Planning, Operations, Intelligence, Axis War Crimes, and Refugees (1920-1983)
Format: Full Text
Database Producer: ProQuest
Hollywood, Censorship, and the Motion Picture Production Code, 1927-1968 This link opens in a new window
Documents forty years of self-regulation and censorship in the motion picture industry from the MPAA.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: Cinema, History, Censorship

Part of Archives Unbound, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) Production Code Administration Files collection documents forty years of self-regulation and censorship in the motion picture industry. The Production Code was written in 1929 by Martin J. Quigley, an influential editor and publisher of motion picture trade periodicals, and Reverend Daniel A. Lord, a Jesuit advisor to Hollywood filmmakers. Officially accepted in 1930 by the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA), the precursor organization to the MPAA, the Production Code presented guidelines governing American movie production. In essence, however, the Code was the template for a theological takeover of American cinema.

From the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Beverly Hills, California. The Motion Picture Association of America Production Code Administration collection, selected from the holdings of the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, California. 30,899 images.

Format: Archival Resources
Dates of Coverage: 1927-1968
Database Producer: Gale Publishing
Literature, culture and society in Depression era America: archives of the Federal Writers' Projec This link opens in a new window
Presents the Federal Writers Project (FWP) publications of all 47 states involved in the project, which ran from 1933 to 1943.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History, English

This collection presents the Federal Writers Project (FWP) publications of all 47 states involved in the project, which ran from 1933 to 1943. Forming the most complete collection of publications from all participating states, this archive contains more than 450 individual items, many of which are typed or mimeographed and received only limited circulation.

The FWP was a part of "Federal One," the arts project established by the WPA to cover music, theater, art and writers.
Making of America (MOA) This link opens in a new window
Primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction.
Off Campus Access: This resource is freely available to anyone.

Alternate URL: http://digital.library.cornell.edu/m/moa/ (Cornell)
- the Making of America is a joint project between the University of Michigan and Cornell University. Both institutions have online portals to this content.

Subject Areas: U.S. History

Making of America (MOA) is a digital library of primary sources in American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. The collection is particularly strong in the subject areas of education, psychology, American history, sociology, religion, and science and technology. The collection contains books and journal articles with 19th century imprints.

Format: Full Text Books, Full Text Journals
Database Producer: University of Michigan and Cornell University with a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Making of the Modern World This link opens in a new window
Provides access to books, articles, and other materials covering the history of Western trade and economy from 1450-1914.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: Economics, Western History, Western Economy, Western Corporations

The Making of the Modern World is an extraordinary series which covers the history of Western trade, encompassing the coal, iron, and steel industries, the railway industry, the cotton industry, banking and finance, and the emergence of the modern corporation.

Focuses on economics interpreted in the widest sense, including political science, history, sociology, and special collections on banking, finance, transportation and manufacturing.

Format: Full Text
Dates of Coverage: 1450-1914
Database Producer: Gale
Sabin Americana 1500-1926 This link opens in a new window
Works about the Americas published throughout the world from 1500 to the early 1900's.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: U.S. History, History

Based on Joseph Sabin's landmark bibliography, this collection contains works about the Americas published throughout the world from 1500 to the early 1900's. Included are books, pamphlets, serials and other documents that provide original accounts of exploration, trade, colonialism, slavery and abolition, the western movement, Native Americans, military actions and much more. With over 6 million pages from 29,000 works, this collection is a cornerstone in the study of the western hemisphere.

Format: Archival Materials
Dates of Coverage: 1500-1926
Database Producer: Gale Publishing.
Sixties: primary documents and personal narratives 1960-1974 This link opens in a new window
Diaries, letters, autobiographies, memoirs, written & oral histories, manifestos, government documents, memorabilia, & scholarly commentary.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: US History; Sociology and Anthropology.

The Sixties brings the 1960s alive through diaries, letters, autobiographies and other memoirs, written and oral histories, manifestos, government documents, memorabilia, and scholarly commentary.

The database covers subjects in arts, music, and leisure, civil rights, counter-culture, law and government, mass media, new left and emerging neo-conservative movement, student activism, Vietnam War, women's movement, etc.

Format: Full Text, Archival Resources
Coverage: 1960-1969
Update Schedule: Completed Archive
Database Producer: Alexander Street Press
Slavery, Abolition and Social Justice, 1490-2007 This link opens in a new window
Full text collection documents key aspects of the history of slavery worldwide over six centuries.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History, U.S. History, Black Studies

Slavery, Abolition & Social Justice, 1490-2007 documents key aspects of the history of slavery worldwide over six centuries. Topics covered include the African Coast, the Middle Passage, the varieties of slave experience, religion, revolts, abolition, and legislation. The collection also includes case studies from America, the Caribbean, Brazil, and Cuba.

Format: Archival Materials
Dates of Coverage: 1490-2007
Database Producer: AM (Adam Matthew Digital)
Slavery and Anti-Slavery: A Transnational Archive This link opens in a new window
Documents from the United States and Europe, as well as other parts of the world. Contains newspaper collections and books published in the antebellum era and documents from several archives originally available only on microfilm. keywords: newspapers
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: History, U.S. History, Black Studies

Slavery and Anti-Slavery includes documents from the United States and Europe, as well as other parts of the world. In addition to newspaper collections and books published in the antebellum era, Slavery and Anti-Slavery contains documents from several archives originally available only on microfilm.

This collection is made up of three sections:
- part I: Debates over Slavery and Abolition
- part II: Slave Trade in the Atlantic World
- part III: The Institution of Slavery.
- part IV: Emancipation

Format: Archival Materials
Database Producer: Gale Cengage
Struggles for Freedom: Southern Africa This link opens in a new window
Provides access to text and images documenting colonial rule, dispersion of exiles, international intervention, and the worldwide networks that supported successive generations of resistance within Southern Africa.
Off Campus Access: Authenticate with your MyDenison login.

Subject Areas: African Studies, Black Studies, History, International Studies, Sociology & Anthropology, Women's Studies

The resource consists of 76 different collections of more than 20,000 objects and 190,000 pages of documents and images, including periodicals, nationalist publications, records of colonial government commissions, local newspaper reports, personal papers, correspondence, UN documents, out-of-print and other particularly relevant books, pamphlets, speeches, and interviews with those who participated in the struggles.

This database is formerly known as Akula, which now split into two databases, "Struggles for Freedom: Southern Africa" and "World Heritage Sites: Africa" .

Format: Archival Resources, Full Text, images
Database Producer: JSTOR

Primary Sources Online

For example, Discovering American Women's History Online

List of Archives Organized by Country
ArchiveGrid
OhioLINK Finding Aid Repository
Library of Congress Digital Collections
Library of Congress Digital Collections, including the former American Memory collections, provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity. These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning.
National Archives
This site provides access to: 1,000 years of British Government records; guides to locating birth, death and marriage certificates; video guides and online exhibits.

Online Digital Collections

American Presidency Project
The American Presidency Project is the only online resource that has consolidated, coded, and organized into a single searchable database:
- Messages & Papers of the Presidents: 1789-1913
- The Public Papers of the Presidents: 1929-2007 & 2010
- Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents: 1977-2009
- Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents: 2009-2012
Digital Public Library of America (DPLA)
Offers a single point of access to millions of items from libraries, archives, and museums around the United States.
DocsTeach
The online tool for teaching with documents, from the National Archives. DocsTeach is a product of the National Archives education division. Our mission is to engage, educate, and inspire all learners to discover and explore the records of the American people preserved by the National Archives.
Life Magazine Photo Archive hosted on Google
Search millions of photographs from the LIFE photo archive, stretching from the 1750s to today. Most were never published and are now available for the first time through the joint work of LIFE and Google.
New York Public Library Digital Collections
Library of Congress Digital Collections
Library of Congress Digital Collections, including the former American Memory collections, provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity. These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning.

Chronicling America: Historic American newspapers This link opens in a new window
Search newspapers from 1880-1910 & find information about American newspapers published 1690-present.
Off Campus Access: This resource is open access, freely available to anyone, and does not require authentication.

Subject Areas: U.S. History, Mass Media, Communication

Chronicling America allows you to search and read newspaper pages from 1880-1910 and find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present.

It includes papers from California, District of Columbia, Florida, Kentucky, New York, Utah, and Virginia include Paris, Kentuckys The Bourbon news, Washington, D.C.s The Colored American, and DeLands own Florida Agriculturist.

Format: Full Text Journals, Archival Resources
Dates of Coverage: Varies
Update Schedule: Annually
Database Producer: The Library of Congress

British Library Digital Collections
Digital collections from the British Library including maps, manuscripts, sounds, theses, photographs, business management, and social welfare.
National Archives
This site provides access to: 1,000 years of British Government records; guides to locating birth, death and marriage certificates; video guides and online exhibits.
Wilson Center Digital Archive International History Declassified
The Digital Archive is a resource where students, researchers and specialists can access once-secret documents from governments and organizations all over the world. Constructed and maintained by the Wilson Center’s History and Public Policy Program, the Digital Archive contains newly declassified historical materials from archives around the world—much of it in translation and including diplomatic cables, high level correspondence, meeting minutes and more. The historical documents presented in the ever-expanding Digital Archive provide fresh, unprecedented insights into recent international history. By making new sources available and easily accessible, the Digital Archive serves to deepen and enrich international scholarship, history education, and public policy debate on important global issues and challenges.
World Digital Library
Launched in 2009, the World Digital Library (WDL) was a project of the U.S. Library of Congress, with the support of UNESCO, and contributions from libraries, archives, museums, educational institutions, and international organizations around the world. The WDL sought to preserve and share some of the world’s most important cultural objects, increasing access to cultural treasures and significant historical documents to enable discovery, scholarship, and use. The materials collected by the WDL make it possible to discover, study, and enjoy cultural treasures and significant historical documents including books, manuscripts, maps, newspapers, journals, prints and photographs, sound recordings, and films.